Headquartered in Canada, DataWind is known for providing low cost tablet computers, like Aakash, to developing countries including India. The company launched a low-cost smartphone Pocketsurfer GZ last week that offers free internet for one year at just Rs. 1,499.
Taking the path to free internet further, the company has announced the launch of a stand-alone Android application that also offers internet services on any Android device without the need of a sim card or any other hotspot device. The app is expected to provide unlimited basic internet access on any Android device for one year.
The official statement mentions, “Users will be able to download the mobile app on any Android device, and either make an online payment for it or purchase a DataWind Internet access pre-paid card that will soon be available at participating retailers within DataWind’s vast retail network of over 51 channel partners across 10,000 retail locations.”
For the internet connection to work, users will have to purchase pre-paid cards, that would be priced nominally. The internet access in India is quite poor in smaller cities and towns and this is where DataWind wants to focus on. “Our app is the next step in achieving our company’s goal of bringing the next billion people online,” said, Suneet Singh Tuli, President and CEO of DataWind.
The company has also gone ahead with creating the app just for Android devices because let’s be honest, Apple users have plenty of money to splurge on internet services. Android smartphones are relatively affordable and more prominent in the Indian market.
Pricing and Accessibility details of the app
DataWind’s app platform will give users access to DataWind’s basic Internet experience, which reduces up to 97% the amount of data needed for web browsing, providing a broadband-like experience on any network — even on legacy 2G networks that are still prevalent in India.
Users will be able to access billions of websites ranging from News, Finance, Travel, Social Network, Email and Educational content. To remind you, the app has been developed to provide basic internet access to users in India, so the heavy websites still might take time to load.
DataWind intends to offer its stand-alone mobile app for between Rs 99 and Rs 150, which equates to approximately $2 to $3 per year. Adding the pre-paid data packs, this is all you would need for internet access, and seems super cheap for Indians since it is a one time payment of a nominal amount.
Unfortunately the company did not release further information about the official launch date and the cost of the pre-paid cards but the app should be made official very soon. Stay tuned for more information as we track the company’s further announcements.
Source: DataWind
